An electoral college is a set of
electors who are selected to elect a
candidate to a particular office. Often these represent different organizations, political parties, or
entities, with each organization, political party or entity represented by a particular number of electors or with
votes weighted in a particular way. The system can ignore the wishes of a general membership.

Origins of electoral colleges

Early Germanic law stated that the German king led only with the support of his nobles. Thus,
Pelagius needed to be elected by his
Visigothic nobles before becoming king of
Asturias, and so did
Pepin the Short by Frankish nobles in order to become the first Carolingian king. While most other Germanic nations had developed a strictly hereditary system by the end of the first millennium, the
Holy Roman Empire did not, and the King of the Romans, who would become, by papal coronation, Holy Roman Emperor or at least Emperor-elect, was elected by the college of
prince-electors from the
late Middle Ages until 1806 (the last
election took place in 1792).

In the
Church, both the clergy and
laity elected the bishop or presiding
presbyter. However, for various reasons, such as a desire to reduce the influence of the state or the laity in ecclesiastical matters, electoral power became restricted to the clergy and, in the case of the
Church in the West, exclusively to a college of the
canons of the cathedral church. In the
Pope's case, the system of people and clergy was eventually replaced by a college of the important clergy of Rome, which eventually became known as the
College of Cardinals. Since 1059, it has had exclusive authority over
papal selection.

In the 19th century and beyond, it was usual in many countries that voters did not directly vote the members of parliament. In
Prussia for example, in 1849–1918 the voters were Urwähler (original voters), appointing with their vote a Wahlmann (elector). The group of electors in a district elected the deputy for the Prussian
House of Representatives. Such
indirect suffrage was a means to steer the voting, to make sure that the electors were "able" persons. For electors, the requirements were usually higher than for the original voters. The left wing opposition was very much opposed to indirect suffrage.[citation needed]

Even today in the Netherlands, the deputies of the First Chamber are elected by the provincial parliaments. Those provincial parliaments form the electoral colleges for the First Chamber elections; the lists of candidates are national.

Ideological Origins

The ideology of the Electoral College as it exists today stems largely from the distributed nature of governance as it persisted through the European Provinces, descending from the style of the Roman Provincial Government. While provincial government was not a new or unique concept to the Roman Empire, the key distinction was a separation of responsibility, whereby the Emperor(Caesar) overlooked the governors, while the actual laws for the populous of Rome was largely handled by the Senate.

In this way, the Emperor did not directly rule the people, save for occasional decrees, and the origin of the Electoral College was born. This would tradition of governmental roles would translate into the later Germanic Empire following the Fall of Rome, who would intentionally model themselves after Rome, right down to the name of their leader, Kaiser, which is derived from the Latin Caesar.

This tradition would go on to shape the entirety of Aristocratic politics for centuries, even in the military, as the European model for military organization works in a similar manner, with orders being given to direct subordinates, with orders coming from immediate superiors with minimal interaction or command with those outside of immediate adjacency. The system of
Peerage in Europe right up to the
Uniform Code of Military Justice which establishes the laws and hierarchy of the United States Military.

This pre-
Enlightenment tradition would be modernized along with
Representative Democracy, and the
Sovereignty of the
State as an independent entity. In the notable example of the United States of America, the Electoral College is a reflection of the
Federalist notion, that the purpose of the Federal Government is to govern the states, not the people of those states, and that governance of the populous as was relevant within the purview of the state, be left entirely to the state outside of the governmental domain.

United States

Specifically within the United States, the electoral college became an entity whose purpose is outlined in
Federalist No. 68, which enumerates the various reasons for and advantages of the electoral college.

The electoral college firstly serves to eliminate many of the concerns present in Non-Representative Democracies, or
Direct democracy, which are subject to foreign influence or exploitation, as well as "Mob Rule" which is the tendency of the majority to trample or exploit the minority in a direct democracy. Additionally, it assigns responsibility to individuals for the outcome of the election. This stems from the assumption that a direct democracy permits people to act with anonymity and impunity, whereas a recognizable figure making choices would be held to a higher standard of honesty and integrity, than an anonymous party casting a ballot for reasons which could be poorly informed or formulated.

Secondly, it is an opportunity for intervention on the part of the state in a population where understanding of the needs, direction, and complexities of the state is not a reasonable expectation of the general population.Given the assumption (which is also the assumption of Federalism) that the Federal Government's sole responsibility is to provide the states with essential services which they can not provide to themselves- which are most notably military protection, interstate contractual enforcement, and interstate negotiation; it would then stand to reasons that persons appointed by the state, rather than the population at large, would be the most well equipped to make decisions regarding the interests of the state at large, whereas individuals, such as in a popular vote, are only best equipped to make judgements based on their needs and understandings as individuals.

Given that the needs and wants of the individuals within the Nation are outside the purview of the Federal Government, and the entities governed by the Federal Government are not the people, but the Sovereign States, then the mode of election for the President would reflect the status of the state as a series of equal and separate entities from the people who compose them. Essentially, the popular vote should be largely irrelevant to the presidency, and that popular vote should be one of, but not the sole factor, which weighs into the informed and responsible members decision's in casting their ballot.

United States

The United States Electoral College is an example of a system in which an
executive president is
indirectly elected,[1] with electors representing the
50 states and the
federal district. Each state has a number of electors equal to its Congressional representation (in both houses), with the non-state
District of Columbia receiving the number it would have if it were a state, but in no case more than that of the least populous state.[2] The electors generally cast their votes for the winner of the popular vote in their respective states.[3] However, there are several states where this is not required by law. In the United States, 270 electoral votes are currently required to win the presidential election.[4]

Worldwide

"Colleges" of electors play a role in elections in other countries, albeit with electors allocated in ways differing from the United States. In Germany, the members of the federal parliament together with an equal number of people elected from the state parliaments constitute the
Federal Convention, that exists for the only purpose of electing the (non-executive) head of state.[5] Similarly, in India the members of the both houses of parliament together with weighted votes from the members of the state legislative assemblies constitute an
electoral college that elects the head of state.[6] In Italy, the (non-executive)
head of state is elected by the members of both houses of
Parliament in joint session, together with delegates elected by the
Regional Councils to ensure the representation of minorities.[7]

Former electoral colleges

Historical examples of electoral colleges include
Finland's, which elected the country's
president between 1919 and
1988. The electoral college was replaced by direct elections (consisting of
two-round voting) since
1994 and by a simultaneous reduction of presidential power.

During
Brazil's military rule period, the president was elected by an electoral college comprising senators, deputies, state deputies, and lawmakers in the cities. The electoral college was replaced with a
two-round systemdirect election in
1989, after the restoration of democracy.

Argentina had an electoral college established by its original
1853 Constitution, which was used to elect its president.[12] The constitution was
amended in 1949 and the electoral college was replaced with direct elections by popular vote used in the elections of
1951. After the
Revolución Libertadora the 1957 reform repealed the 1949 Constitution and the electoral college was used again in the elections of
1958 and
1963. The elections of
March 1973 and
September 1973 used direct elections by popular vote and a not used
two-round system according to the Temporary Fundamental Statute enacted by the
military junta in 1972. The elections of
1983 and
1989 used again the electoral college. The constitution was amended in 1994 and the electoral college was replaced with direct elections by popular vote, using a two-round system since
1995.

Paraguay had an electoral college established by the
1870 Constitution, which was used to elect its president. The constitution was amended in 1940 and the electoral college was replaced with direct elections by popular vote since
1943.

Chile had an electoral college established by the
1828 Constitution, which was used to elect its president in the elections from
1829 to
1920. The constitution was
amended in 1925 and the electoral college was replaced with direct elections by popular vote since
1925.

In
Spain, during the
Second Republic period (1931-1936/39) the President was elected by an electoral college comprising the Parliament members and an equal number of democratically elected members ("compromisarios").

Early in United States history, state legislatures were essentially electoral colleges for both the U.S. Senate and even the federal Electoral College itself. Prior to
1913, U.S. state legislatures appointed U.S. senators from their respective states, and prior to 1872, U.S. presidential electors were in many cases chosen by state legislatures (though most states had switched to popular elections for electors by 1824). Because state legislatures had so much influence over federal elections, state legislative elections were frequently proxy votes for either the Senate or the presidency. The famed 1858
Lincoln–Douglas debates, reputedly held during a U.S. Senate campaign in Illinois, actually occurred during an election for the Illinois state legislature; neither Lincoln's nor Douglas' names appeared on any ballot. During the
American Civil War, the
Confederacy used an
Electoral College that was functionally identical to that of the United States; it convened just once, in 1861, to elect
Jefferson Davis as president.